EUREKA – Members of the San Francisco Opera Guild will perform a free mini-opera on Sunday, Oct. 30 at 4 p.m. at the Arkley Center for the Performing Arts in Eureka.

Mira Wiedman and Sierra Farquar, students at Northcoast Preparatory and Performing Arts Academy (NPA), will have speaking roles in a free mini-opera of Donizetti’s “The Elixir of Love.” The girls are studying vocal performance and will also give vocal recitals this December. Photo by Emily Cornelius/NPA

Costumed members of the San Francisco Opera Guild will sing this mini-opera in English. Local NPA students will have speaking roles and the NPA chorale will sing. The performance is suitable for children and adults.

The San Francisco Opera Guild’s Opera à la Carte program brings high-quality, professional opera to over 130 schools a year. NPA, an Arcata-based charter high school with a performing arts emphasis, has brought Opera à la Carte performances to Humboldt County for the last several years.

“At a time when school funding for the arts is being cut, I feel it’s more important than ever to create opportunities for children to experience the magic of the performing arts firsthand,” said Dr. Jean Heard Bazemore, founder and principal of NPA. “Our goal in bringing this performance to Humboldt County is to excite, inspire and help give voice to a new generation of expressive thinkers.”

Following the performance, audience members are invited to join the members of the San Francisco Opera Guild at a no-host dinner at Avalon, located at Third and G streets in Eureka. Call Avalon at (707) 445-0500 to make a dinner reservation.

The Opera à la Carte performance is free and open to the public. Donations will be gratefully accepted to defray the cost of bringing the opera to Humboldt County.